
Hopscotch
Hopscotch is a popular child’s game whereby a player tosses a small object such as a stone, onto numbered squares drawn on the ground and then hops or jumps through the spaces to retrieve the object. It is can be played alone or with several players.
Players: Up to 5 children can play
You need: An object such as a stone.
How to play:
- Draw a traditional hopscotch diagram like the one below.
- Throw a small stone, twig, coin, beanbag, or other object into the first square. If it lands on a line, or outside the square, you lose your turn. Pass the object to the next player and wait for your turn.
- Hop on one foot into the first empty square, and then every subsequent square, but skip over the one your object is on.
- At the pairs (4-5 and 7-8), jump with both feet.
- At 10, hop with both feet, turn around, and head back toward the start.
- When you reach the square with your object, pick it up —still on one foot —and complete the course.
- If you finished without any mistakes, pass the object to the next player.
- If you fall, jump outside the lines, or miss a square or your object, you lose your turn.
- You must start where you left off when your next turn begins e.g. if you fell at square 3, this is where you begin your next turn.
- Whoever reaches 10 first, wins the game.
Hopscotch around the world:
Hopscotch is played throughout the world, sometimes with slight variations. This is what it’s called worldwide:
- In Germany, Austria, and Switzerland hopscotch is called Himmel und Hölle (Heaven and Hell).
- In India, hopscotch is also called Kith-Kith, Stapu, Langdiin the Hindi-speaking areas, or Ekhaat Duhaat or Ekka Dukka in Bengal.
- Hopscotch is known as Potsy in New York City, (USA).
- In Brazil, it is called Amarelinha, whist in Chile, it is known as Luche.
- In Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Uruguay, and Spain, hopscotch is called Rayuela and Xarrancais the Catalan version of hopscotch.
- Chindro is the South Asian version of hopscotch.
- In Ghana, hopscotch is called tumatu, and in Zimbabwe, the game is called pada and is mostly played by girls.
- In Sweden the game is named hoppa hage(lit. jumping the garden) and in Norway it is called paradis, or Paradise.
- In Italythe game is known as campana (bell) or mondo (world).
- In the Netherlandsand Flanders, it is called Hinkelen (skip).
- In Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbiait is called školica, (little school).
- In Malaysia, the most popular variant is called tengteng.
- In Turkey, it is Seksek(from sek, "to hop").
- In Russianit is known as классики (klássiki, meaning “classes”).
- In Romaniathe game is called șotron and is widely played.
- Hopscotch is called Marelle in France. They have a variation called escargot(snail) or marelle ronde (round hopscotch) played on a spiral course. Players must hop on one foot to the center of the spiral and then reverse their path to back out again.